DMCC: The financial centre that we have already built

Why the DMCC Financial Centre is the necessary formalisation of a powerhouse where physical trade, regulated derivatives, and digital capital have converged for two decades

- Ahmed bin Sulayem

The DMCC is home to 1,620 companies in banking, insurance, family offices, fintech, and investment. — FILE PHOTO

(FILE PHOTO)

Dubai is not a city that waits for permission to innovate, but one that builds, iterates, and redefines its own future, and nowhere is this more visible than in the intersection of trade and finance. This is the logic behind the DMCC Financial Centre, a working title for a fully operational financial centre which will be formally unveiled later this month during the Dubai Precious Metals Conference. Unlike our regional peers, we are not starting from zero, but formalising what already exists.

Out of more than 26,000 active companies across our district, DMCC is home to 1,620 in banking, insurance, family offices, fintech, and investment. These firms do not operate in silos but are part of a broader architecture that already links trade to capital, digital innovation to regulation, and physical commodities to liquid markets.

As the only free zone to bootstrap its rise, initially through a USD 200 million Gold Sukuk, DMCC used the funds to construct three commercial towers, including Almas, the world's tallest diamond tower. Within five years, despite the 2008 downturn, DMCC repaid the sukuk in full, affirming the confidence of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai. That prudence continued, most recently evidenced by the complete sale of all units in Uptown Tower. In addition to its headline developments, DMCC's ecosystems have also grown to provide the right foundation for the forthcoming financial centre.